Flutey out but Simpson travels to World Cup

England Team Manager, Martin Johnson, has announced the 30-man squad that will travel to New Zealand for next month’s Rugby World Cup.

Captain, Lewis Moody, will lead the side into the tournament where they face Argentina (September 10), Georgia (September 18), Romania (September 24) and Scotland (October 1) in the pool stages.

The squad, made up of 17 forwards and 13 backs, has a blend of experience and youth ranging from Jonny Wilkinson (Toulon), who is heading to his fourth World Cup, to London Wasps scrum half Joe Simpson, who is the only uncapped player. Simon Shaw, at 37, is the oldest player and Manu Tuilagi, at 20, the youngest.

Eleven have featured in previous tournaments, five were World Cup winners in 2003 and eight appeared in the 2007 final.

On naming his squad Martin Johnson said: “The composition of the squad is very important and we think we have the right mix in this group. There were some very tough phone calls made last week; everybody came into this camp and worked extremely hard and some players have just missed out.

“For us now though it is important to look forward – there is great sense of unity in this group and we are pleased with the depth across the squad.

“We have a number of leaders and experienced players and have named Lewis Moody as squad captain, we are confident he will play a pivotal role for us in New Zealand.

“Ultimately our aim this week is to prepare well for Ireland and to continue improving as a team. We are all looking forward to the tournament and know that selecting the 30 man squad is just the beginning.”

England complete their build-up preparations against Ireland at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin on Saturday, August 27 (2.30pm).